Apple changes the size of the iPhone: The iPhone has always been the perfect size for me and my pocket. But the rumor is Apple wants to make a bigger phone to compete with Android phones like the Samsung Galaxy series. They can make a bigger one if they want, so long as Apple keeps its traditional size without sacrificing any hardware specs.

An assassination attempt is made on the Pope: This was pointed out by someone much wiser than me. This new Pope is undoing a lot of the damage the Catholic Church has been doing for generations. The simple act of living a simpler lifestyle is big enough, but he’s shaken things up much more than that. Whether you’re Catholic or not this guy influences a lot of people. But, with change comes fear of change too. And he could be a prime target but some crazy person that doesn’t agree with their views.

Interest rates go down: Last year ended with interest rates actually starting to rise a bit. The 10 year Treasury bond is now yielding close to 3%, compared to almost half that last May. Higher rates do mean borrowing is more expensive, which can drag the economy. But higher rates also mean the Federal Reserve no longer needs to provide an artificial floor on the economy. Hopefully 2014 is the year the economy is ready to move out of Mom and Dad’s house.

Killing unemployment benefits for the long-term unemployed hurts the economy: In the late-fall budget deal one of the losers were the long-term unemployed. There are camps on either side of the political and economic argument about this move. In all honesty, we don’t know what will happen. But, I’m sure everyone hopes that these people losing benefits will be able to find jobs after all.

Obamacare fails: Why anyone would ever hope a policy fails is beyond me. Most politicians disagree on policy because of what they think the outcome will be. The number one goal of Obamacare is to bring down the cost of healthcare. Everyone should hope that works whether they believe it will happen or not. Sure, there are many rules in the law we could change. But to hope it is a disaster, or just about any policy would be, is saddening.

General Motors buys Tesla: If I’m running GM, I’d likely buy Tesla yesterday. This is the first company to legitimately disrupt the auto industry in decades. With each new car, Tesla moves further down market and takes more market share from other automakers. Granted, the electric car is still in its infancy, but this company and its products are industry disruptors. And they can change the entire focus of a huge portion of our economy. An industry analyst thinks GM could buy the company in 2014, let’s hope that doesn’t happen because they’ll just crush it.

Congress holds the economy hostage: If 2013 proved anything to us, it’s that Congress can still put a gun to the economy’s head and get what it wants. The budget deal at the end of 2013 gave us all some hope, but surely even the wrong eye contact in Washington could flush all that down a $2000 toilet. Here’s to a 2014 where Congress doesn’t make things worse, again.

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When you stick to economics, you have some very interesting columns. When you don’t, you frequently don’t.
You ask: “Why anyone would ever hope a policy
fails is beyond me. . . The number one goal of Obamacare is to
bring down the cost of healthcare.” First, why would any one want a policy that is little more than a progressive income redistribution scheme? Obamacare has caused 6 million people to lose insurance they were satisfied with. The replacement policies, in most cases, had higher premiums, higher deductibles, higher copays, narrower provider networks, more limited drug formularies and impossible to understand regulations. Why would any rational person want such a policy to succeed? On top of that, you have a president who changes the law at his whim. Then, of course, there are the infringements on religious freedoms. There are many less offensive ways for the government to provide contraceptives if that is what they want.
The goal (#1 or any other number) of Obamacare was NEVER to bring down the costs of healthcare. To quote Jonathan Gruber, one of the architects of Obamacare,

“I would view it as part of a broader set of evidence
that covering people with health insurance doesn’t save money,” says
Jonathan Gruber, a health economist at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, who has also studied Oregon’s Medicaid expansion but is not
affiliated with this study. “That was sometimes a misleading motivator for
the Affordable Care Act. The law isn’t designed to save money. It’s designed to
improve health, and that’s going to cost money.”
Of course, you are relying on another of the many lies told by Obama – that a family’s health insurance premiums would drop by $2,500 (they have actually increased by $3,000).
Could all of the above be some of the reasons why 2/3 of Americans want Obamacare gone?

In a normal political world, opponents would modify, tweak and adjust bad policy. However, with Harry Reid controlling the Senate and Obama in office, changes can’t even be considered.

Two interesting questions – If Obama had not lied would he have been elected? Second, how would Mitt Romney have MANAGED healthcare change??

azrael

@nkbay99 it’s not about bringing down costs, it’s about the right for medical care, quite literally the right to live. For everyone, not just those who can afford it.
It’s called socialism, doubt you US guys will ever get it.